WTI $102.44 -17c, Brent $109.69 +32c, Diff $7.25 +49c, NG $4.55 +8c

Oil price

Another fairly short blog today, news is a bit thin on the ground and I am off shortly to do my regular interview with Proactive Investors, hopefully the link to that will be on the website (www.malcysblog.com) by tomorrow. After that I am meeting with industry legend Peter Hughes, where he will tell me all about Petra Oil.

The only really interesting thing about the oil price since yesterday was the API inventory number which took the market and the doltish analysts by surprise with a draw of 10.3m barrels, the brains trust had been going for a build…With the driving season starting on Monday the gasoline build was also not a surprise to me and tonight’s EIA numbers will be crucial.

Sundry

BP get a big write up in the FT this morning after the Fifth Circuit Court loss which I mentioned yesterday. Ed Crooks correctly suggests that the company’s only option now is to go to the US Supreme Court and I have no hesitation in thinking that they will do just that, last chance saloon and all that…

The Shell AGM yesterday and the comment I liked the most was that at only €8.5m, Peter Voser’s pay last year was halved after ‘ a disappointing business performance’ wouldn’t mind a bit of that lousy performance myself…

Trinity Exploration has announced the results of the B-9X infill well on the Trintes Field which was also a bit of an exploration well as it went after different zones. I am waiting to speak to the company and will report back further tomorrow but as far as I can see it was a bit of a curates egg of a well. Overall very good as they found ‘material hydrocarbons’ but the well was shut in when at the OO level due to high pressure not handleable by the kit on the site. I am a big fan of Trinity and shares are far too cheap down here at 108p this morning, more later.

Another well that has gone wrong is the Tower Resources well in Namibia operated by Repsol. Welwitschia -1 had a wellhead slump and was p&a’d and re-spudded 50 metres away (on May 1st but I cant find detail of that) but since then the BOP has been found faulty and the well is suspended and hopefully re-starting at the end of this month. Tower say that there should be ‘no material financial consequences’ and apart from the bad luck of a well going wrong this much it should be business as usual after this.

Finally, Plexus Holdings has announced yet another contract this time in a new area, offshore China which is very exciting. The client is Shell whom they have worked for before but not out of the Singapore office. You all know what I think of Plexus and the share price has crept back to nearly 300p after drifting lower earlier in the year. Plexus remains reassuringly expensive which deters all but the canniest of investors who are already reaping rewards and will reap many more I’m sure.

Write-ups to come include the Italian trio of MOG, Sound (results today fine but not indicative of future performance but a very positive statement) and Northern Petroleum Range Resources and Lamprell, all of whom I have seen in the last week.

And finally…

If you watched the T20 cricket last night you will know how excruciating it is to follow English cricket. Looking like they had been blown away by Sri Lanka with dreadful catching and pedestrian batting, England eventually nearly got up, leaving themselves just too much to do……..

So, Yaya Toure is kicking off because he didn’t get a Bugatti for his birthday and that his club have forgotten about him in the last few days. I don’t think they have as I suspect they haven’t forgotten to pay him his £250,000 a week wages or whatever he is on, the words ‘grow up you spoilt little brat’ come to mind…

We are into the Conference Finals in the NBA as the Heat take on the Pacers and OKC are up against the Spurs.

Last night the Heat levelled their series 1-1 after playing two games in Indiana. Tonight, OKC go to San Antonio aiming to do the same.